


a tea for here, please

by bubbleTeaAndHotChocolate



Series: Coffee Shop series [1]
Category: DBSK | Tohoshinki | TVfXQ | TVXQ, JYJ (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Coffee, First Kiss, M/M, YunJae, date
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-04
Updated: 2020-11-04
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:27:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 11,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27377185
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bubbleTeaAndHotChocolate/pseuds/bubbleTeaAndHotChocolate
Summary: Coffee shop AU, Jaejoong POV. Kim Jaejoong is a barista, Jung Yunho is an architecture student who comes to Moldir Cafe to study and get work done. Mostly.
Relationships: Jung Yunho (DBSK)/Kim Jaejoong
Series: Coffee Shop series [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1999906
Comments: 2
Kudos: 12





	1. First Meeting

Chapter 1

Jaejoong sighed as he finished arranging the sweets display, barely resisting the urge to eat some of it. Today wouldn’t be busy, as it was the day after Christmas, but that was the whole problem. Without the distraction and noise brought by customers he really felt like he would fall asleep standing up. Stifling a yawn, he decided to try thinking of all the parts of a cell and their functions to stay awake.

“Hey, how was your family?” a familiar voice asked to his left, interrupting his list at “mitochondria”.

He smiled, remembering last night, “They’re good! I met my new brother-in-law, too.”

Yuri nodded and finished arranging the mugs. She opened her mouth as if she was going to ask more, but then she shut it and instead pulled out her phone.

“My turn today?” Jaejoong nodded, and Yuri frowned a little in concentration as she chose a playlist. Soon, soft, lilting music wafted from the speakers into the morning. Jaejoong started cleaning the counters, but Yuri put her phone in her pocket and walked towards him, her hand out.

“No, I can do it, you should sit down.” 

Jaejoong quickly moved the towel out of reach. “I’m just tired, I’m still gonna work!”

Yuri put her hands on her hips before giving up and getting the broom, “If you say so. I didn’t even travel anywhere and I feel like falling asleep.”

Jaejoong put the towel away and started checking the coffee machines. Turns out a skincare routine and BB cream were useless for hiding exhaustion from coworkers. Still, he figured he didn’t look too bad for someone who had taken a one and half hour bus home, celebrated Christmas with his family until 3am, then slept until 7 and bussed back. It wasn’t his fault he had winter classes and rent to pay. It wouldn’t even have been that exhausting if he hadn’t had an exam right before.

A customer opened the door, briefly letting in the cold winter air. They glanced at the chalkboard menu hanging somewhere above Jaejoong and Yuri, then walked up to the counter.  
He was tall and his sweater looked really nice and soft, even if it was the cousin of an ugly Christmas sweater. He was probably also a student, since he looked young enough and this 24-hour café was really close to the university. Jaejoong’s brain snapped into barista mode and he focused on pronouncing his words properly. Nobody needed to deal with him blurring his words out of exhaustion and possibly letting his dialect slip out.

“Hi, what can I get you?”

The stranger’s deep brown eyes met his. Jaejoong’s brain decided to sleepily muse about how handsome he was, and he almost missed the order.

“Oolong tea, please.”

“What size?” Jaejoong had heard eyes described as “warm” before, but he got the feeling he hadn’t understood what that meant until now.

“Medium.” 

“Name?” Jaejoong decided to look at the register computer instead.

“Yunho.” He had his wallet in his hand now. Jaejoong finished typing in the order, then turned the credit card reader around to face him. Jaejoong had worked here long enough to have accidentally memorized where all the onscreen options were, and he could tell that Yunho had tipped him. He put his wallet back in his pocket and gave Jaejoong a courteous little half bow.

“Thank you, I’ll call your name when it’s ready.”

“Thank you.” He walked to a table near the bookshelf, away from the door. Jaejoong started preparing the tea, and Yuri took his spot at the register.

Maybe it was because it was a slow day, or maybe it was because he always became a little bit of a romantic after visiting home, but he hoped that meant Yunho would stay a while. Normally he was too tired balancing his barista job, tutoring, school, and hanging out with friends to entertain dating. He was kind of a serious relationship guy, and it seemed he’d only have time for casual dating which was a stressful concept to him. But when he went home and spent time with all his sisters, he started fantasizing about it. Especially now that his oldest sisters were married and even discussing having kids.

Across the café, Yunho was pulling what looked like a notebook and a pencil case out of his black backpack. Jaejoong felt the small vindication of being correct.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had them meet on DBSK's debut anniversary, haha


	2. Caught

Chapter 2

Two weeks into the new year, and Jaejoong was already losing his mind. At this point, he just kept reminding himself the winter session was almost over and he was doing well so it wouldn’t do to fail his classes now.

In other news, Yunho came to the café about twice a week, and did the same thing every time. Ordered some kind of tea, then sat at that table next to the bookcase. Jaejoong had figured out that he wasn’t bringing a notebook. It was a sketchpad, which he’d draw in for a few hours while barely drinking his tea.

He had also figured out he was developing a bit of a crush. At first, he’d just been cataloguing details about Yunho, as though he were simply bored at work. Yunho was left-handed, always ordered tea and not coffee, and clearly either really liked drawing or was studying something that used it. But then he found himself thinking about his long legs and how even his “thank you for taking my order” smile genuinely lit up his whole face and realized he might have a problem. Also, today the sunlight had been slanting through the window while Yunho was sketching at his table, and Jaejoong had zoned out a little, lost in the glow it gave his soft black hair and the way his hands seemed strangely elegant, making small lines rapidly with his pencil.

Jaejoong had shaken his head to clear it, then walked straight to the back room and started doing dishes. It helped a little, although he started thinking about how Yunho’s tea was definitely cold by now and that he’d like to go over and ask if he wanted it reheated. Then he could see what on earth Yunho was drawing, too. Should he do that? Would it seem obsessive?

He sighed, scrubbing a plate distractedly. It had occurred to him that he hadn’t actually dated anyone… ever, so he should probably ask someone these things. Sooyoung, maybe. She worked the last half of the week with him, and she’d had a boyfriend for a year now. But Jaejoong was too busy psyching himself out to the point where he even felt embarrassed Googling his questions.

Besides, maybe he was just curious. Wondering what Yunho was drawing or if he went to the same university as Jaejoong did or if he had siblings were just normal things to wonder about the customers, right? Maybe he should try to befriend Yunho before doing something drastic. He wasn’t a fan of that whole “writing your name and phone number on a stranger’s coffee cup” cliché. Yunho clearly liked coming here and staying for hours, and if Jaejoong made it awkward he’d stop. And what if he wasn’t even available? Part of him hoped Yunho would just ask him out, but that was ridiculous. He would’ve by now-

“Jaejoong oppa, Jaejoong oppa!” He turned around to find Yuri staring at him. Clearly he’d zoned out, again.

“Uh sorry, what?”

“Your shift ended, and Seungkwan’s here.” Jaejoong’s eyes widened.

“Ah! Coming, coming!” He became a flurry of motion, walking towards the door and taking off his apron at the same time. Then he got his backpack, walked back to the counter, then registered a brown-haired freshman waving at him from a table.

As he sat down, Seungkwan greeted him. “Hi, sorry I’m here early!” His tutoring technically started in five minutes. Jaejoong waved him off.

“No, no it’s fine.” He glanced at Seungkwan’s notes. The pages were highlighted and covered in neat handwriting.

Jaejoong squinted, reading it upside-down. “it’s the cell cycle checkpoints this week, huh.” Seungkwan took on a lot of stress about classes, but he was really an easy-going person otherwise. He grinned and nodded, gathering up his notes and taking out his worksheet. Jaejoong set about explaining the different concepts to him, feeling a bit weird. He usually did tutoring in the student lounge of Seungkwan’s dorm, but he’d switched shifts today and asked Seungkwan to come here. To the café. His place of (other) work. Where he was now sitting a mere table away from Yunho.

About half an hour later, Jaejoong was looking up the digital flashcards he had made for this class on his phone to quiz Seungkwan, feeling proud of himself for having not looked at Yunho in at least five minutes. He started quizzing Seungkwan, looking between him and his phone to make sure he’d gotten the answers fully right. At this point he was playing two games at once: quizzing Seungkwan and trying not to look at Yunho. A few minutes in, he gave up. He’d been glancing at Yunho for weeks now, hadn’t he? One more wouldn’t hurt. He looked up and snuck a peek.

And immediately looked back down at his phone, a small smile forming on his face. Yunho had been looking right at him, his sketchpad on the table and his chin resting on one of his hands.

 _This shouldn’t be a big deal,_ Jaejoong told himself sternly. _You are going insane from work. It’s Friday. Please go hang out with your actual friends so you stop wanting to befriend random strangers._ It had been a long week though. So Jaejoong decided locking eyes with Yunho, who looked very nice in his nice black jeans and yellow sweater, was a nice reward to get at the end of it.


	3. Macarons

Chapter 3

Jaejoong shifted his weight to one leg so he could tap his foot on the floor behind him, bored. After the insane rush of customers they’d had last week at all hours due to winter semester exams, this week seemed unbearably slow. This time last week he’d been juggling multiple orders at once while Yuri took the register, her smile wearing thin. His brain was stuck in revision mode even though they were now in the small break between winter and spring class sessions. He couldn’t even look at the dessert counter without his thoughts helpfully reciting which desserts were unsafe for dogs to eat.

To make matters worse, he hadn’t gotten to take Yunho’s order last week. Jaejoong was really starting to realize the amazing capacity of the human mind. Even dealing with a dozen orders at once he apparently still had the time to glance over at Yunho’s disappointedly empty table. There was too much noise then for him to zone out then. All he’d done was look over, feel sad that Yunho wasn’t there, then go back to his task and repeat the cycle.

On top of that, today was his birthday. Last year, he had been working here but January 26th had been a Sunday. By the time he realized that meant his coworkers might not know what day it was, he figured it was too late and he shouldn’t say anything in case it made them feel bad. He could tell them later, for next year. He had plans this weekend anyway so he shouldn’t complain if he didn’t get another party the day of.

Which really meant that since he had no classes and life was going pretty well, he only had one wish for the actual day. Well, his real wish was to figure out how to ask Yunho out, but he was not about to risk tainting his birthday for the rest of all time. So instead he was really hoping that his secret favorite customer would appear so Jaejoong could figure out if he was wearing a nice sweater or scarf today and most importantly: see that smile. Jaejoong knew in his heart that having a nice smile was probably due to factors like genetics and not quality of personality, but for some reason every time Yunho smiled at him he got the impression that Yunho was a really kind person. Actually, he felt that every time Yunho smiled. He had a habit of doing smiling when he was checking his phone. He also had a habit of apologizing to inanimate objects. Customers could leave their dishes on the table so staff could pick them up once they left or put them on the far-left counter. Yunho always brought all his dishes to the counter, but he’d almost dropped his mug a few weeks ago. Jaejoong had heard him mumble “so sorry” to the ceramic and almost laughed at how cute it was.

Jaejoong suppressed a dramatic sigh, telling himself seeing Yunho any other day would be the same as seeing him today, and turned to ask Sooyoung to switch with him at the counter. But where’d she go?

“Sooyoung!” He yelled towards the back room, not wanting to desert the register since there were customers present. Sooyoung came out, carrying a tray of chocolate cookies.

“What’s up?”

“Will you switch with me after you- ” Jaejoong turned after hearing the entrance door open and cut himself off, “-never mind! Never mind.” It seemed he’d get his wish today after all.

Yunho was wearing a black poofy jacket over a red sweater today. He met Jaejoong’s eyes and smiled. Jaejoong shivered a little at the cold air he’d let in. _This is your reminder that he’s smiling because he’s nice and he recognizes you now, Kim Jaejoong. Don’t you dare get dramatic about this._

“Which tea will it be today?” He asked, teasing.

Yunho rubbed the back of his neck, looking embarrassed, “I’m a bit predictable, aren’t I?”

Jaejoong shrugged, “You just like what you like!” _Yeah, or I’m a creepy barista who memorized your orders. I should get a grip._

“Okay, I’ll get a medium green tea, please.” They went through the usual routine, but when Jaejoong looked up, he was startled by the fond smile on Yunho’s face.

“Well, you know where I’ll be sitting.” Jaejoong nodded, his mind blank.

Yunho got halfway to his table before Jaejoong realized that his comment didn’t really make sense, as he wouldn’t bring him his order. Although he could. The whole point of calling customers’ names when their order was ready was that they could add things like milk and sugar from the containers on the counter, and Jaejoong had somehow memorized Yunho’s preferences. One sugar, quite a bit of milk. He decided to tease him about this at the counter later.

It turned out this was just not in the cards for him today. Once Yunho got to the counter, the sound of multiple people singing happy birthday came from behind Jaejoong. He whipped around, squinting at his co-workers. Now that he thought about it, Sooyoung had disappeared into the back room for a while earlier, even though Yuri was already in there. And Minhyuk and Yeowool, the other part-timers, had headed straight to the back room as well after they came in. Usually they talked to whoever was at the register if they got here before the shift change. Jaejoong laughed as he realized that without even being present, Yunho had distracted him so much he hadn’t realized any of this.

The Yunho in question joined in the singing, and Jaejoong was suddenly a bit flustered. He was vaguely aware that the two other customers had started singing too, but mostly he was trying to figure out what to do with his face and his hands. He shifted his gaze to Sooyoung, in a bit of a panic. She was doing that sort of clap where you moved your hands together too slowly to make actual sound, so he copied her, unable to stop the smile on his face. The group of part-timers stopped in front of him, still singing. Minhyuk attempted to smoothly put a birthday cone hat on his head. Jaejoong protested, holding out his hand for the hat instead, but Minhyuk shushed him and did it himself anyway. Yuri and Yeowool were behind him with a cake. It said, “Happy Birthday, Jaejoong!” in green icing, and there were small black cat silhouettes dotted throughout.

They reached the end of the song, everyone clapped, and the customers yelled “Happy birthday!” before returning to their business. Except Yunho, who was looking at the cake inquisitively.

“Please blow out the candle, I’m really hungry,” Yuri said quietly, with the tone of someone who didn’t want to be rude but also had things to do. Jaejoong laughed and obliged. Minhyuk started cutting the cake, and Jaejoong turned to Yunho, wondering why he hadn’t taken his tea and gone back to his seat yet.

“Um, do you want a piece?” Yunho held up his hand.

“No, no, I’m supposed to eat less sugar these days. Can I get you something for later, hyung?”

_Hyung? Ah, I must be older than him, but I can’t be that much older than him… if he’s trying to get something for me, we can drop the formality, right?_

“You don’t have to call me hyung, Jaejoong is fine, really. And you’re getting me what?”

Smiling, Yunho tapped the dessert display case and said, “Okay, Jaejoong. Which is your favorite? I’m buying it for you.” He rubbed the back of his neck, looking at the cake. “Or I can buy them for you another day, since you already have cake today.”

“I can eat both! Hmmm… I’ll pick the macarons.” Jaejoong managed to get out, proud of himself for being able to name any desserts at all in this moment.

“Okay, I’ll get five, one of each flavor. Alright?” This last bit was directed at Jaejoong, who nodded dazedly while reaching for the tongs.

“Oh would you stop, it’s your birthday.” Sooyoung cut in, swatting his hand away. She looked over at the cake, seeing that Minhyuk had already put some pieces on plates. “Hey, let’s pick a table and eat. Unless... Jaejoong, if you have plans, you can go, I’ll put these in a to-go box. Your shift just ended.”

Jaejoong smiled, shaking his head. “No, of course I’m staying.” He picked up a plate and held it out towards Sooyoung with both hands, pouting like a hungry child. “Please give me my macarons now.”

Sooyoung laughed, herding everyone out from behind the counter after giving Jaejoong his macarons. She stayed behind the register to take Yunho’s payment, as he was insisting on paying. They all ended up sitting at the table nearest to the register, in case more customers came in. Yunho tried to go back to his table, but Jaejoong decided to try his luck and pulled out a chair for him. “You got me macarons, come sit with us if you’re not busy.”

Yunho accepted the invitation with a smile and a thank you, polite as ever. Jaejoong mused that the universe must really like him, because here he was, on his birthday, somehow sitting next to Yunho. And after he finished this piece of cake, he was going to eat macarons that _Yunho had bought for him_.

Also, apparently being this close to Yunho’s soft sweater made him feel warm for no reason. Yunho was friendly too, asking everyone’s names and majors. Unsurprisingly, they all attended the nearby Seoul National University. And so, one of Jaejoong’s questions was finally answered: Yunho was an architecture major. They were both second years. The sketchpad was probably for school.

“Ah, is that why there are cats on the cake? Because you’re pre-vet?”

Jaejoong was functioning surprisingly well in the face of that blinding smile, probably because this was all feeling like a dream. “I mean I think so. I didn’t order the cake, remember?” Yunho flushed, and Jaejoong scanned his co-workers, remembering Yuri and Sooyoung’s earlier disappearance. “It was you two, wasn’t it?”

Yuri paused, cake halfway to her mouth. “Yeah, right both times. We, um, didn’t think about what the cats would look like after we cut the cake though…”

“Oh my God, Yuri. Rest in peace kittens, I’ll save you next time.” Jaejoong said, putting his head in his hands in mock sadness.

Minhyuk looked at his fork thoughtfully. “Hey, Jaejoong hyung, do you think animals can leave ghosts?”

Jaejoong opened his mouth, but Sooyoung was faster. “Yunho, I swear we’re not psychopaths.”

Yunho waved her off, shaking his head. “I’m curious now too, anyway.” He looked at Jaejoong expectantly.

Jaejoong toyed with his last macaron, procrastinating on finishing it. “How am I supposed to know? I hope not, they’ll haunt me. I’m curious about something too, though. Who found out it was my birthday? And how? I thought I hadn’t told any of you.”

Yeowool piped up, “Oh, that was easy. We used to do stuff for everyone’s birthday at my high school job, so when I got here, I looked everyone up,” she glanced at Yunho and added, “we’re... not stalkers.”

Yunho apparently wasn’t ready to move on from the topic of animal ghosts. “What if they’re friendly ghosts? Like pets that miss their owners and don’t want to leave yet. Nobody said they had to haunt anyone in a horror movie way.”

Jaejoong smiled, marveling at how if he didn’t think too hard, this felt like what he imagined introducing your date to your friends felt like.

And so, on his 20th birthday, Jaejoong learned two things: one, Yunho was the kind of person who could discuss the possibility of animal ghosts for half an hour, and two, desserts tasted better when Yunho bought them for him.


	4. Names

Chapter 4

Yeowool gently tapped Jaejoong’s shoulder, interrupting a little fantasy he was having about running his fingers through Yunho’s hair. He hadn’t cut it for a while, and although he looked good in short hair too, the longer hair was… getting to Jaejoong. It looked soft, and sometimes Yunho had to move it out of his face while drawing.

“Um. Jaejoong oppa. Minhyuk oppa told me the street food market is fun for dates, if you ever want to…” she trailed off, glancing at Yunho, who was seated at his usual table.

Jaejoong almost jumped and barely managed a “What?” He hadn’t even been looking at him!

Yeowool seemed to shrink a little, stammering, “Sorry, I just thought- it’s not my place, sorry.” Jaejoong smiled sheepishly.

“No, it’s okay, you’re not-” he ran his hand through his hair, “-you’re not wrong.” It had been almost two weeks since Jaejoong’s birthday. The next time Yunho came to the café, Jaejoong had walked over and asked him if he wanted his tea reheated after an hour passed without him finishing it. Yunho had murmured “Thanks,” cradled the warm mug in his hands and looked up at Jaejoong before closing his eyes to take a sip. Flustered, Jaejoong had looked down at the table and seen a sketch of Yunho’s for the first time. It was beautiful, even if Yunho hadn’t finished coloring it yet. The building he’d drawn had a sign in front of it that read “Gwangju Elementary School.” Yunho had caught him staring and flipped it over.

“Sorry, I-” Yunho shook his head a little, and Jaejoong abruptly shut his mouth.

“No, it’s fine. Just it’s not done yet, so you can’t see it yet.”

Jaejoong stood up straighter, realizing he had started leaning on the table a little. “Well, so far it looks… really nice. I can’t draw at all, this is… wow.”

“Thanks,” Yunho said quietly, before sipping his tea. Jaejoong had gone back to the register with the image of Yunho drinking tea with his eyes closed frozen in his mind.

Jaejoong’s heart skipped a beat every time he thought about it. Something about seeing Yunho’s sketches felt weirdly intimate. Jaejoong didn’t draw, but it had felt like when he let people try his cooking for the first time. He hadn’t gone back to the table since. Just because they were friends adjacent now, that didn’t give Jaejoong the right to start slacking off at work and disrupt Yunho’s, too. He sighed.

“Hey, Yeowool. Do you think he’d… do you think he’d want to go out with me?”

Yeowool bit her lip, letting out a sigh of her own. “I really do think so, but… apparently I’m not the best at figuring out when boys really like someone, so.”

Ah, now this was familiar territory. Welcome, even. Eight older sisters and you really could become an expert in all the flaws of men. “Well, you figured out with me. Don’t worry, someone who actually deserves you will come around.”

Yeowool smiled, then turned to Jaejoong and pouted. “You sure about that?” Jaejoong flicked the air in front of her forehead, reminded of how he still pouted in front of his sisters so they’d keep reassuring him. He was the youngest in his family and nobody had done it to him before.

“Yeah. Our Yeowool is so smart. And also so nice! You started the birthday party tradition and even helped me with date ideas. For sure someone else will also figure this out. Stop worrying and do your inventory.”

Yeowool stuck her tongue out at him and turned back to her work. “Haha, thank you, really. I’ve got time anyway, right?”

“Right!” He answered, nodding wisely.

A few minutes later, Yunho walked his mug to the dishes counter as always. But then he walked towards the register, and Jaejoong’s fingers curled around the edges of the counter nervously.

Jaejoong fake gasped, “Ordering more? What’s the occasion?” Yunho had already been seated when Jaejoong came in to start his shift, so he’d known better than to hope he would see him for as long as usual. But still. _Stay longer, please. You never order twice in a day, but please._

“It’s my birthday, actually.” Yunho smiled, pulled out his wallet. “One medium oolong tea, please.”

 _Our birthdays are this close together? And you still tried to call me hyung?_ “Really?” He gently pushed the card in Yunho’s hand away. “This one’s on the house then,” Yunho opened his mouth, probably to insist on paying anyway, and Jaejoong cut him off. “You paid on my birthday, remember? Anyway,” he added cheekily, “do you have a wish I can grant?”

Yunho chuckled. Then he bit his lip and his face turned serious, pensive. Jaejoong dragged his eyes up to meet his and kept them there through a force of will he didn’t know he had.

“Hmm.” Yunho leaned forward a little, and Jaejoong’s breath stuttered. “When I accidentally let my tea go cold, will you reheat it for me? Like before? It’s really not fair to do that once and then let me go back to experiencing cold tea.” His voice was teasing, warm. Jaejoong nodded, and Yunho’s voice turned soft. “Thank you.”

He could feel Yeowool watch him exhale when Yunho walked away. He whispered at her, “I’m _trying_ , okay? Don’t give me that look, please.”

Yeowool looked at him, clearly exasperated. “This is not that hard, you’re overthinking it. Just say you’re doing something this weekend and ask if he’d like to go with you. Hiking, eating, drinking tea but at another café… seriously, have you-” her eyes widened, “have you never asked anyone out?”

 _Is it that obvious?_ Jaejoong groaned. “I’m not answering that. And he probably has birthday plans this weekend!” He continued in a light tone, “you’re younger than me, where are your manners?” Yeowool huffed and handed him the teabags without looking at him.

Forty-five minutes later, Jaejoong reheated Yunho’s tea and brought it to his table. Yunho had his sketchpad leaned against the table with the drawing facing his chest so Jaejoong couldn’t see.

“Hey, Jaejoong,” Yunho said as he set the mug down on a coaster, “you remember the sketch you saw last time? The one I hadn’t finished?” Jaejoong nodded, and he continued, “I finished, do you want to see?” Jaejoong nodded again. Yunho flipped his sketchpad around and held it up, so now it was covering his face.

Jaejoong stifled a giggle. _He’s so… cute sometimes._ The finished product was something else, though. The building looked so realistic Jaejoong could imagine going inside. And about the sign, he had a guess… “it looks so good! You’re from Gwangju, aren’t you?”

Yunho lowered the sketchbook, his tone suddenly more formal. “Thanks. I am from Gwangju, this is my elementary school. Or, well, it’s me redesigning it for class.” Jaejoong’s eyes were still tracing the lines of the drawing, transfixed. _How do people come up with whole buildings on their own? How do you even start?_

Yunho lifted the corner of the sketch, sounding almost shy. His face looked a little flushed. “I had to do sketches of the inside too, do you want to see? I know you have work.”

Jaejoong smiled wryly. _No, I don’t. Yeowool gave me a whole other job to do._ “A few more minutes won’t do anything.” He stood next to Yunho so they could both see the sketches at the same time, feeling something fluttering in his chest. Yunho was showing him his work, the thing he spent so much time and effort on. He was so close his hand was brushing Yunho’s shoulder. While Yunho flipped to the page he wanted to show, Jaejoong caught glimpses of his other sketches. They looked like other rooms and floorplans.

Yunho stopped flipping, and Jaejoong registered that he was showing him a drawing of a classroom. He’d put a lot of details in it, from the little locker labels for each student to the cubbies in the walls for books and school supplies. Jaejoong realized having the shelves and cubbies built into the wall like that saved space. He briefly imagined sitting down with Yunho somewhere quieter, asking him about how on earth people even did this, and an idea formed in his head.

“Yunho,” Jaejoong said, still looking at the sketch. Yunho turned to look at him, but Jaejoong kept his focus on the sketch, trying to pick his words. “Does the architecture school have some sort of showcase? If it does and your stuff will be there, I’d like to go.”

Before Jaejoong had time to spiral, Yunho answered, “there is.” And Jaejoong couldn’t help it, he looked back at Yunho. And… oh. The way Yunho’s smile rendered him absolutely speechless was unfair.

_You’re happy I asked, right? I didn’t say it would be a date, but it wouldn’t not be…_

Yunho rushed on, “But it’s at the end of the semester. There’s an exhibit at the university that I wanted to check out next week, though. If you’d like to come.” Now it was his turn to avoid Jaejoong’s eyes and stare at the sketch.

Jaejoong was now acutely aware of how his hand was still brushing Yunho’s shoulder. He was also aware that he wouldn’t need to check his schedule first. It didn’t matter if he had a shift, a tutoring gig, or class. Yunho definitely didn’t need to know that, though.

“I’d like that. I’d really like that. What day is it?” Jaejoong answered, taking the step back to his earlier spot so he could face Yunho again.

Yunho reached for his phone and unlocked it. “It’s next Wednesday, at 6,” He held the phone out to Jaejoong, “Can I have your number? In case you get lost or something… I’m guessing you’ve never been in the Architecture building.”

That was fair. Jaejoong had mostly only been in the Veterinary Sciences building and in various dorms and libraries for tutoring. He put his number in, handed the phone back, said goodbye, and walked back to the register.

His phone buzzed as he started straightening the dessert display. He opened it to see a text.

“It’s meeeeee (Jung Yunho).” Jaejoong tried to control the smile on his face, but then he looked up and locked eyes with Yunho across the café and he couldn’t help it. _He even texts cutely._

Later that night, Jaejoong sat in his room studying, unable to stop himself from looking at the text every couple of minutes. He felt jittery and excited, thinking about talking to Yunho for more than a few minutes for the first time. Technically, he’d already spent hours with Yunho, but being across the café didn’t count.

Before getting ready for bed, he edited the contact information to save Yunho’s name. He had a full name now. And a major. And a birthday. And a bunch of other random facts. Yunho only ever ordered tea, not coffee. Yunho tipped every time he ordered, even though Jaejoong estimated he came to the café at least twice a week. Yunho had a habit of focusing on his homework so hard that his tea would go cold. Yunho was so polite that he still said “please” every time he ordered and “thank you” every time he picked up. Actually, Yunho was so polite he tried to call Jaejoong “hyung” even though Jaejoong was barely older.

“Jung Yunho,” he whispered to himself. _Is it weird to think someone has a nice name?_ He giggled, thinking about how he could call Yunho right now. He wasn’t going to, but still. “Jung Yunho,” he repeated, sighing. What a day.

He typed in “My Jung Yunho <3” and admired how it looked before erasing it and typing “Jung Yunho” in the contact name box.


	5. Exhibit

Chapter 5

Jaejoong was sitting on the couch, knees drawn up to his chin, arms wrapped around his legs. He’d started stress pacing around the apartment, so then he’d worked out. Yunho had texted him that he didn’t need to dress super formally, so now he was in his nice jeans and sweater, trying to suppress the urge to leave now and thus arrive half an hour early.

“Shouldn’t you be at work?” Jiyeon asked, collapsing on the couch. His roommate hated Wednesdays, since she had back-to-back classes from 8 in the morning to 5 in the afternoon.

He’d traded his 3-10pm shift with Yeowool so he could go to the exhibit with Yunho. “Not today, I switched shifts to hang out with a friend.”

Jiyeon squinted at him. “Are you going somewhere nice? You look nice.”

“And here I was thinking I always looked nice,” Jaejoong whined, trying to avoid the question. Jiyeon and him were high school friends and in the same major. The Venn diagrams of their friend groups was almost a full circle, and if she kept poking around she was going to figure out he was hiding his massive crush from her. Jiyeon swatted at him.

“Fine. Nicer than usual. Where are you going?”

 _Don’t be too vague, she’ll know._ “Some kind of exhibit. It’s on campus, in the architecture building.”

He wouldn’t mind telling Jiyeon too much, she was an old friend and all. He just preferred telling people about things once they were confirmed. He hadn’t tell his friends which universities he’d applied to until he’d gotten into one. It wasn’t to the point that he’d lie to them, though. Jiyeon eyed his outfit again.

“Hold on, which friend is this? It’s an architecture major? I didn’t think we knew any architecture majors…” Jaejoong could practically see her mentally going through her list of friends. He casually tucked the hand on her side behind his elbow to be safe. He didn’t need her noticing he was wearing one of his rings.

“Excuse me, I have friends you don’t know, too!”

“Oh really? Then where’d you meet this one?”

“The café. Maybe if you visited me more often, I wouldn’t have to make new friends.” He pouted at her.

“I live with you already, silly. So you’re just chatting up customers at work?”

On second thought, it might be kind of fun if Jiyeon figured it out. “Yeah, it’s a customer.”

“Must be a really friendly customer then, inviting a random barista to things,” she squinted at him. “You’re… you’re curled up, are you nervous or something? Why-” Her mouth snapped shut.

 _Darn, she’s not even gonna give me another question to answer instead._ “Yeah, yeah I am,” he stared straight ahead at the wall. “Just, don’t ask more, I’ll tell you when I get home.”

 _Old habits die hard._ If he couldn’t procrastinate on telling her until after he’d asked Yunho out, then he could at least wait until after they’d hung out together outside the café for the first time.

“Hmm. Deal. Uh, good luck?” Jiyeon stopped slouching on the couch and started fishing out in her backpack for her laptop. Apparently, she was done denying that her 8am to 5pm classes also had associated homework.

He smiled, hopping off the couch. He should just catch the bus now and be a few minutes early. “Thanks. And please eat dinner soon. Like, actual dinner.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Jiyeon muttered as she opened her laptop.

One ten-minute bus ride later, Jaejoong was standing outside of the architecture building and toying with his bracelet. When he looked up and saw Yunho, he completely froze.

Yunho was wearing white jeans that were better fitting than usual, and he’d paired his black shirt with a blue blazer. With his fancy watch and stunning smile, he looked like a _chaebol_ straight out of the kdramas Jaejoong and Jiyeon watched sometimes. The kind that made them yell things like “your family is still corrupt!” and “stop making me forget your crimes!” at the TV.

Yunho gave him a cute little wave, and Jaejoong snapped out of it. He punched his shoulder lightly as they walked in together. “You lied to me! You said I didn’t need to look super nice!” Yunho grinned.

“Just because you don’t doesn’t mean I don’t have to. My professors might show up. Seriously, you’ll be fine. There will be a lot of students going for extra credit, and they’ll show up in hoodies.”

“If you want to impress the professors just tape one of your sketches to your shirt, Jung Yunho,” Jaejoong sulked just a little, for the fun of it. _Ah, there it is._ Yunho avoided his gaze, and Jaejoong thought he might be blushing a little, too. Making Yunho flustered with compliments was quickly becoming his new favorite activity. He wasn’t joking, though. Yunho’s work was impressive, especially to his untrained eye. But anyone could see how passionate he could get talking about it, which Jaejoong thought was more important. That kind of thing made professors want to mentor you.

Yunho bumped shoulders with him, his voice teasing. “You won’t think I’m that great after tonight, I’m only a second year. But thanks.” _Yeah, right. If only you had any idea how great I think you are as of right now…_

They’d reached a set of glass double doors. Something about the way Yunho held open the door and ushered him in, his hand ghosting across Jaejoong’s back, made him feel warm all over. He cast about for something to say besides the only thought he currently had, which was “Yunho looks really hot right now, really really hot.” His eyes landed on the event banner hanging from the ceiling. Evidently, the name of the exhibit was “The Green House: New Directions in Sustainable Architecture and Design.”

Yunho saw him looking. “The exhibit is about eco-friendly architecture. Certain techniques and designs, depending on, like, climate of the region and so on, can be used to reduce electricity usage. Some of it’s actually really simple changes, it doesn’t always have to involve tearing down and redoing all buildings,” he explained, his tone suddenly going quite formal. “Anyway- excuse me, Mr. Kim Jaejoong, why are you smiling? Does the impending doom of climate change amuse you?” Yunho crossed his arms and mock glared at him. He was biting his lip to stop himself from smiling.

“No sir, no I do not. Please continue,” Jaejoong responded, suppressing a giggle and sweeping his hand in front of him to usher Yunho on. He was not about to admit his sudden realization that he found Yunho’s passion extremely attractive. He could probably listen to Yunho talk about anything as long as he did it with this much energy.

Yunho stepped towards him, and Jaejoong gaze flickered briefly, distracted by his closeness. “Really, now. Then what are you smiling about?”

“You,” the word slipped out, and Jaejoong couldn’t pull it back. “How much you like what you do. You’re not ever sick of your field?”

Yunho sighed, turning and motioning for Jaejoong to follow, leading Jaejoong to a quieter corner. The exhibit was set up in a very large room, with small alcoves holding different parts of the project.

“I don’t know if this counts as being sick of it, but we are so hypocritical sometimes. If you think about it, this showcase is about improving the world through architecture, right? But most of the professors won’t even fight to use these techniques in our own building because they’re scared of getting on the university’s bad side. Actually, forget the eco-friendly stuff, they won’t even fight to make the university more accessible to its own students! This building is a nightmare for anyone who uses a wheelchair! And nobody wants to talk about the labor going into this, because supposedly it’s ‘not our business,’ even though you can’t name a single famous building where the people who actually, like, physically made the building were paid fairly. I mean… I don’t know. Surely it’s a little like this in your field too? In every field?” He ran his hand through his hair.

 _Damnit,_ Jaejoong thought fondly, _your righteous anger is even hotter. I’ve made this worse… if I can’t find one negative thing about you by the end of tonight, I might go insane…_ “I mean, to oversimplify it… veterinarians are doctors for animals… a lot of the problems you see in human medicine are an issue for us too. I always think when I start working I’ll just try to make good choices and change what I think is wrong, but then I think that’s probably what the people before me thought they would do too. And there’s so much… ego in our fields. We’re saving lives, and you’re basically leaving your mark on the earth, especially if you create something really famous.” Yunho nodded silently, looking deep in thought.

Jaejoong pointed to the miniature building they’d stopped in front of, wanting to coax a smile out of Yunho again. “Now please explain what this is all about. Do you get to make cute little fun-size buildings too?” It worked. Yunho smiled, and Jaejoong thought: _wow, I did that, that’s all for me_. He remembered animal academy, when the grumpiest cat in the session had taken a liking to him and only him, refusing to let anyone else pet it. This was like that, but better, because they were in their own little corner and nobody else was jealous and glaring at him.

Yunho skimmed the informational sign, his forehead wrinkled in concentration. “Yeah, I make model buildings too. Okay, so this one here proposes using more recycled materials to make the building, and of course,” he pointed to the mini-windows and roof, “these both have solar panels, and the roof is collecting rainwater to use for gardening and stuff.” Jaejoong bent down, looking closer.

“The windows have solar panels? But they look like normal windows!” He knew this miniature didn’t actually have solar panels, but he assumed that it would look very realistic.

Yunho nodded. “Yeah, see-through solar panels were invented a while ago, which is really good because most solar panels look kind of ugly, which annoys people. Yet here we are, not using them everywhere. I mean, it wouldn’t be best to have them _everywhere_ , but still… oh! And I don’t know if you’ve ever seen glasses that use transition lenses?”

“Like the ones that get dark when it’s sunny outside?”

Yunho nodded again. “These windows have that too, so it can block the sun when it’s too hot outside, which will obviously lower the energy used on aircon…”

They went from alcove to alcove like this, Yunho explaining the building features and Jaejoong alternating between asking questions and teasing Yunho. He also spent some time zoned out, admiring Yunho’s long elegant fingers as he pointed at things, the shape of his moving lips as he talked, the flush of his cheeks when Jaejoong complimented or teased him. When they found the refreshments table, Yunho got him what he wanted instead of letting him serve himself. Jaejoong got the feeling Yunho liked hosting. He found he really liked being the center of his attention, too.

As Yunho had predicted, some of his professors were here. He was polite as ever, briefly introducing Jaejoong and then chatting for a few minutes. These were prime opportunities for Jaejoong to lose a little self-control and let himself be entranced by the full visual before turning back to whichever professor had found them this time.

 _I’m so greedy,_ Jaejoong mused, _first I hoped he’d come to the café again, then I wanted to talk to him more, then I wanted to spend time with him outside of work, and now when he introduces me as his friend I want to be more than that…_

Yunho stopped walking suddenly, even though they hadn’t reached a display yet.

“What is it?” Jaejoong asked quietly.

“Sorry, I’m so rude… have you eaten yet? We can get something, if you want.”

Jaejoong had eaten ramyun out of stress earlier, but he could eat more. That didn’t matter, anyway. “Yeah, we can get something. Have you eaten? We can go somewhere that’s fast.”

Yunho shook his head quickly. “No, I haven’t either. Is there anywhere you want to go?”

At that moment, a familiar voice floated into Jaejoong’s head, and he almost burst out laughing.

_The street food market is fun for dates…_

“The street food market? The one that’s like a ten-minute walk from here?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jaejoong's roommate is named after Gummy, not T-ara Jiyeon. Though she's great too!


	6. Sauce

Chapter 6

Yunho smiled so brightly while buying their _dakkochi_ that one would think Jaejoong was the one treating him, not the other way around. Who knew someone that polite could also be so… competitive? Jaejoong had insisted on buying the _tteokbokki_ and Yunho had said fine, as long as he got to pay for the next thing. But then Jaejoong had picked something cheaper, and Yunho had said that wasn’t fair.

So now they were fighting to pay at every food stall. Jaejoong worked two jobs outside of school to support himself, so obviously he didn’t come from money. He suspected Yunho didn’t either, because he was being very fussy about making sure his clothes didn’t get stained. But this market was near the university and not in a tourist trap, so the food was cheap. Yeowool had been right. This was really fun. They’d talked about a lot, too. Yunho had a younger sister who was still in high school. He taught hapkido to kids as a side job. He didn’t like coffee because it made him jittery. He had a sweet tooth but was really trying to control it. He’d tried a couple times but had not yet successfully managed to cook.

Yunho handed Jaejoong his _dakkochi,_ still grinning. Jaejoong briefly thought about how he wished he could remember this moment and that smile forever, to cheer himself up in times of stress. Then he realized he was both an idiot and living in the 21st century. He pulled out his phone, deciding to try his luck.

“Hey, Yunho! Smile, with your food!” Yunho obliged, and that was how Jaejoong got his first picture of Yunho. This night just kept getting better and better. And Yunho took pictures of him, too.

Also, he’d finally found a flaw in Yunho. Unfortunately, he was currently so attracted to Yunho he was finding it endearing instead of finding it annoying. Yunho was a bit of a messy eater. He was clearly restraining himself for the sake of his outfit, but Jaejoong could tell, being a very neat eater himself. For example, he currently had a bit of sauce near his mouth. It was driving Jaejoong crazy and sending his thoughts into dangerous places.

He took a deep breath. _Don’t make it weird, it won’t be weird if you act normal._ “Yunho, you’ve got…” he pointed to the corresponding spot on his face.

“Oh, really?” Yunho held out his hands, each one holding an end of the skewer he was eating chicken pieces from. “Will you..?” Then he closed his eyes, his lips pursed the slightest bit. He looked adorable, but Jaejoong’s heart was pounding so hard he could almost hear it.

 _Oh. Oh… he wants me to… don’t you dare make this weird, don’t you dare make this weird._ Jaejoong took yet another deep breath and wiped the sauce off himself, at least having the presence of mind to use a napkin instead of his finger. He’d never gotten to stare at Yunho’s face like this. There was a faint scar next to one of his eyes, and a mole right above the edge of his lip that Jaejoong had never noticed before. Repressing a sigh, he touched it through the napkin before pulling away.

_Oh, Jung Yunho… if anyone has ever kissed you before, even for only a second, I’m so jealous right now… this is torture…_

Yunho opened his eyes. “Thank you.”

Jaejoong bit into his chicken, not trusting himself to speak right now. “What time is it?”

“It’s almost ten. We should leave soon. Where do you live?”

“A little north of campus. Near the hospital. What about you?”

“Right next to campus, probably a five-minute walk. You take the bus, right? I’ll go with you and then come back.”

Jaejoong lowered his skewer to stare at Yunho pointedly. “You don’t have to… you’d be going there and back for no reason, I’m fine. If anything, I should walk you back and then leave, it makes more sense.” Yunho stared back.

“I have manners and it’s dark! I’m the one who invited you here, remember?”

“Ah, so you’re gonna protect me, are you?” Jaejoong teased.

Yunho set his empty skewer on his napkin and crossed his arms. “Black belt in hapkido, remember?”

In response, Jaejoong pulled his keys out of his pocket and jingled them so Yunho could see the attached pepper spray. Yunho heaved a dramatic sigh.

“Stop making this difficult, I want to, okay? Please?” He pouted. _Okay, and what if I pass out from overexposure to your smile, and your pouts, and your laugh? Have you thought about that?_

Jaejoong put his hands up in surrender. “Okay, okay.” Yunho beamed, as though Jaejoong was doing him a favor instead of the other way around. He snatched Yunho’s skewer and napkin so he could throw all their trash away, and they headed for the bus stop.

For the first time in his college career, Jaejoong wished the bus ride from campus to his apartment was longer. He was more than content like this, sitting next to Yunho with their shoulders and arms touching, listening to Yunho point out facts about Seoul and its buildings that he’d never known and explaining his classes in return. Yunho was quite jealous that Jaejoong got to occasionally spend time with animals for class.

The walk from the bus stop to Jaejoong’s apartment was like 15 seconds, but Yunho insisted on walking him there anyway. At this point, Jaejoong was also jealous of anyone who had gotten to hold Yunho’s hand. When they reached the apartment, Jaejoong turned to face him.

“Promise I can make it inside without you, go home already.”

Yunho had a strange look on his face, like he was trying to figure something out. Then the expression vanished, and he looked down and smiled. “I… I had a good time today. I hope you did too.”

Jaejoong smiled too. _You have no idea._ “I did, really. See you later?”

“See you later,” Yunho said, giving Jaejoong a little wave. Jaejoong responded with a wave of his own. Yunho walked backwards a few steps, then turned on his heel and kept going.

Jaejoong got to his room, then pulled out his phone. He typed a text saying “Good night, Yunho.”, his finger hovering over the send button.

So far, he had used absolutely no emojis while texting Yunho. He loved emojis, but several people around him had said that he possibly loved them too much. Sooyoung had previously described texts from him as “emoji keyboard smashes” and “forty animated e-cards at once.” After Minhyuk mistook one of his texts as some sort of really strange virus, Jaejoong had reluctantly started restricting his emoji usage.

He couldn’t help it! They were cute and expressive! And he’d had a really, really good day. Just one wouldn’t hurt. He couldn’t imagine Yunho hating him on the basis of one emoji. So he added a slightly blushing smiley face, and hit “send”.

Less than a minute later, his phone buzzed. Yunho.

“Good night, Jaejoong.” And at the end, he’d added the same emoji.


	7. Confession

Chapter 7

A week later, Jaejoong was at the café sweeping behind the register and in the back room when he got a text from Yuri. He squinted in confusion. She was standing less than ten feet away. Then he saw what the text said, and his breath caught a little.

_Oppa, it’s not my business who you like, but if you stare at that guy that much he’ll notice._

What was it with people figuring this out too early? Jiyeon and Yeowool already knew. That was too many people.

 _Staring at who?_ He heard Yuri huff and ignored it.

_Yunho oppa. Tall, architect major, comes here a lot? You reheat his order, and his order only? You hang out at his table sometimes? Should I keep going?_

_I’m trying not to!_ This time, he heard Yuri snort in disbelief. He glared at her, and she mouthed “sorry” before going back to work.

The truth was, Yunho had been acting a little distant lately. Jaejoong had wanted to invite him out again, but he was too busy this week. He’d had to swap shifts because of an exam, which meant he was working at the café until midnight tonight. So he’d had to settle for reheating his tea when it got cold and bringing it to his table, which Yuri apparently referred to as “hanging out at his table.” Insanity. He’d only reheated Yunho’s tea for him twice! Once on his birthday, and once two days ago.

Jaejoong wished he’d been actually hanging out at the table. Yunho was polite and thanked him, but he hadn’t tried to strike up conversation, which seemed out of character for such an extrovert. Even when Jaejoong asked him things, he gave short answers and didn’t ask questions in return. Feeling discouraged, Jaejoong had thought that maybe something had changed between them since they’d gone out. But on the inside, he knew he wasn’t a big enough part of Yunho’s life to affect his whole demeanor like that. Still, he had been frustrated, and it burst out of him before he left the table.

“Are you mad at me or something?”

Yunho didn’t look up. “What? No.” Jaejoong frowned, then turned to leave.

“Sorry, it’s not that. Really. I’m just-” Yunho sighed, gesturing vaguely at the papers spread out all over the table, “- really, really busy right now.”

And that was almost worse. It was probably something to do with how he was raised, or the fact that he himself loved being fussed over, but Jaejoong had a prominent mothering instinct. Yunho’s tired smile and somewhat slumped posture had awakened it. When his friends got sick, Jaejoong would check up on them and bring them food if he had time. So now here he was, two days later, feeling the urge to bring Yunho food. And walk him home. And make sure he went to sleep. And- well, he was pretty sure the other thoughts were just “I want to be his boyfriend” thoughts.

Yuri was right. If he kept looking over at Yunho out of worry, he was going to notice. Although maybe he would be too tired to notice. Also, Jaejoong was determined to blame the whole situation with Yuri on the fact that they had downed espresso shots earlier to prepare for this shift. It was definitely not that he was being obvious, Yuri was just on a caffeine-induced heightened plane of awareness right now.

It didn’t take a heightened plane of awareness to notice that Yunho had fallen asleep, though. He crossed his arms on the table and laid his head down on them. Jaejoong knew he had passed from just taking a break to sleeping when his chest rose and fell at the same slow rhythm for a few minutes.

“Five, four, three, two, one… it’s over, it’s over, we made it.” Yuri put her phone down and collapsed into a chair. She looked over at Jaejoong. “We survived our shift, why aren’t you more excited? Let’s get out of here!”

Jaejoong shook his head. “I need to do something, you go ahead though. Have a good night… day? Whatever.”

Yuri squinted, then turned sharply to look at Yunho. “Oh… okay. Have a good day, _oppa_.”

The problem with working in a 24-hour café was that he couldn’t use the excuse that they were closing soon to wake Yunho up. But Yunho only a lived a few minutes away. _Pretend he’s just a friend. Do what you’d do for a friend._

And so Jaejoong quietly set his backpack down next to Yunho’s table and tried to gather his papers as quietly as possible. He wouldn’t wake Yunho up until all his stuff was put away. That way he could just wake him up and drag him home.

He looked at Yunho, sleeping soundly and occasionally shifting subconsciously to get more comfortable. A fond smile spread over his face and he reached over, pressing his hand against Yunho’s arm through his shirtsleeve and shaking. The noise in the café melted away to the sound of Yunho’s soft, even breathing.

“Yunho… Yuunhooo… wake up.” He whispered. Yunho turned his head a little but remained solidly asleep.

Jaejoong bit his lip. He’d just keep shaking him while raising his voice… that usually worked. “Jung Yunho please wake up, don’t make this weird for me-”

Yunho eyes flickered open, then closed. “Mmm. Jaejoong?” Jaejoong immediately realized he hadn’t prepared himself for Yunho’s sleepy voice. His breathing went shaky. He really wanted to card his hand through Yunho’s hair and listen to that voice some more. _Say something or he’ll fall back asleep, you idiot._

“Um. Yeah, it’s past midnight. Come on, I’ll walk you home-”

“Jaejoong… Jaejoong…Kim Jaejoong.” Yunho sighed slowly, clearly still half-asleep. Jaejoong’s breath caught at the sound of his own name in that voice.

He lifted his chin a little, then dropped it on the hand Jaejoong had been using to shake his arm. Jaejoong jumped a little in shock. Then his brain shorted out, everything narrowing to the feeling of Yunho’s head on his hand, the little puffs of his breath ghosting across the skin. He briefly considered sitting down and falling asleep with Yunho, like they were on a couch or a bed and not the uncomfortable wooden chairs of a busy café.

Yunho was still blessedly delirious. “Your hand… cold… are you cold…? One minute, then I’ll go… and sorry…” Jaejoong shook him a little more, feeling helpless. _You’re so cute,_ he mouthed at him, delighting in the fact that Yunho couldn’t see him.

There was a sudden flurry of movement as Yunho straightened, taking his arms off the table. He shook the sleep from his eyes and automatically reached for his papers before realizing they weren’t there. Then he finally looked at Jaejoong, eyes squinting in confusion.

A very panicked Jaejoong held the stack out in front of him with both hands, trying to create some sort of barrier.

Yunho took the stack from him with a quiet “Thank you.” The rest he said while opening his backpack and placing the papers in a folder. “Sorry for falling asleep. Good night.” He gave one of his little half bows.

“Let’s go, then. Do you have everything?” Yunho hit his pocket lightly, checking for his phone. Then he frowned at Jaejoong.

“You don’t have to-”

Jaejoong saw that coming. “It is after midnight and you’re half asleep. It’s not even that far, and-”

“Okay.” Jaejoong snapped his mouth shut. He’d thought of more arguments while shaking Yunho and was surprised he wouldn’t have to use all of them.

They walked outside, but Jaejoong’s mind was still back in the café, listening to Yunho roll his name around in his mouth with that contented, sleepy voice.

Yunho’s shoulder bumped Jaejoong’s and he realized it was because Yunho had almost lost his balance. He grabbed both Yunho’s shoulders and forced them both to stop walking. Yunho went completely still and Jaejoong dropped his hands, realizing Yunho’s shoulders had stiffened. They walked back in near silence, Yunho rubbing his eyes every minute or so.

Jaejoong’s brain had decided to relive the moment Yunho had put his chin on his hand, followed by the memory of his name falling out of Yunho’s mouth in that dazed, satisfied sort of way, as though they were two videos in a playlist set on infinite loop. Yunho stopped suddenly, pointing to the building they were in front of.

“There, that’s my building. Sorry for falling asleep-”

“Stop apologizing for that-”

“-and text me when you get home, okay?” Jaejoong quieted, looking at his feet and nodding.

“Jaejoong…” Something in his chest snapped at the sound of his name in Yunho’s mouth. Jaejoong stepped closer, reached out for him. His breath caught when Yunho accepted his embrace, his arms wrapping around Jaejoong’s waist. Surprisingly, Jaejoong felt his heart rate slow back down to normal, soothed by the warmth of Yunho’s chest and arms. He let the tip of his nose brush Yunho’s shoulder, inhaling slowly. He could’ve sworn he wasn’t sleepy, but his thoughts started taking on the sort of fantasies he usually only entertained in dreams, or while zoning out at work. _I could kiss him right now. We could go to his room… oh, I want to see his room…_

Suddenly, the thought of possibly having to wait until next week to see Yunho felt unbearable. “Come to the café tomorrow, please. If you’re not too busy.”

Jaejoong could feel Yunho’s surprised laugh in his own chest, and he hugged Yunho a little tighter. “Okay. Why? When is your shift?”

“Three to eight. I… I need to tell you something.”

Yunho kept his arms wrapped around Jaejoong’s waist, but he pulled out of the hug a little, just enough to see Jaejoong’s face better. “Just tell me now, silly.”

Jaejoong shook his head. “No. You’re really tired. You’re like half asleep.”

“No, I’m awake now. Really,” Yunho bent down a little, trying to meet Jaejoong’s lowered gaze. “Please?”

Jaejoong tapped his fingers on Yunho’s shoulders nervously, then forced himself to stop. It dawned on him that this might be his first and last time hugging Yunho. He may as well say all of it, then. “Alright, alright. I… I want to go out with you again,” He squeezed his eyes shut for a second, then forced them open again, saying the next part as fast as he could. “You’re sweet, and funny, and smart, and you- you looked so hot last week, I wanna date you. I would like to date you.”

Yunho slid one of his hands around his neck before Jaejoong fully processed what was happening, and then he gently pulled Jaejoong into a soft, slow kiss. He stroked Jaejoong’s cheek with his thumb and then broke the kiss before sliding both his arms around Jaejoong’s waist and kissing him again. Jaejoong melted against him, feeling ecstatic and relieved.

If Jaejoong had known it would be like this, he would’ve confessed so much earlier. He slid one hand into Yunho’s hair like he’d wanted to do for ages, the fingers of his other hand gently curled around the curve of Yunho’s neck. He tilted his head, deepening the kiss just a little. Yunho sighed in response, pulling him closer, and Jaejoong felt like he’d won something precious.

They pulled apart, panting a little, and Yunho pressed his forehead to Jaejoong’s. “God, you’re so beautiful. Been wanting to tell you forever.” Jaejoong slowly moved his fingers through Yunho’s hair.

“Really?” Shock had muted Jaejoong’s voice to a little above a whisper.

“You didn’t notice the freshmen at the exhibit staring at you?”

Jaejoong giggled softly. “They were probably staring at _you._ Your blazer, and your white pants… it’s unfair, you looked so good.”

Yunho darted in for a quick kiss before resting his forehead against Jaejoong’s again. “Fine, you want to hear more. Hasn’t anyone told you your eyes are gorgeous? With those long eyelashes too… and that stupid soft white sweater with your skin… and the boots too, it doesn’t even make sense, I never thought boots were hot before-” Jaejoong interrupted him with a kiss of his own, feeling embarrassed. But Yunho was on a roll. He just kept going after Jaejoong kissed him.

“-and your laugh, how does it sound so… bubbly? I don’t even know…” Jaejoong suddenly remembered something. He pulled away a little more and watched Yunho’s eyes blink open.

“Close your eyes again. Please,” Jaejoong requested, feeling shy. Yunho obliged immediately. Jaejoong’s gaze dropped to that ever-distracting mole right above the corner of Yunho’s lips, the one he’d noticed at the street market.

He brushed his thumb against it, enchanted. Yunho’s lips parted a little at the touch and Jaejoong’s breath caught. His thoughts still felt fuzzy.

“I heard somewhere that… moles are where your lover in your past life kissed you the most…” he lost track of what he was saying and brushed his lips against it, before kissing Yunho again.

Yunho’s thumb brushed against his cheek. Jaejoong’s eyes fluttered shut. “You have one too, I just noticed it.” And then Jaejoong felt soft lips replace the thumb.

“Mmm. We should go, we should go,” he murmured, trying to convince himself.

Yunho continuing kissing Jaejoong’s cheek. “It’s really late. Stay here?” He mumbled against Jaejoong’s skin. Jaejoong shoved at him lightly.

“It’s not one yet, the busses are still running,” Yunho opened his mouth but Jaejoong continued rapidly, “It’s not… I’d like to, another time, I just have… issues, I guess… I pace around ‘cause I’m a bit of an insomniac, and I can’t go to sleep if I haven’t brushed my teeth, and-” Yunho shushed him with his finger, a smile spreading over his face as Jaejoong pouted against it.

“I won’t push,” he moved the finger was still pressed against Jaejoong’s lips, brushing against them as he thought. “I wanted to kiss you goodnight so badly last time…” Jaejoong’s eyes widened in understanding, and then he quickly squeezed them shut.

Yunho’s fingers slid into his hair. He kissed him gently, but for a little longer than Jaejoong thought he would. His heart raced when Yunho whispered “Good night, then,” against his lips.

Hoping for another kiss, he whispered, “It’s morning now, actually.”

Jaejoong heard his laugh, felt it settle into his bones. “Good morning, then.”

With Yunho kissing him like this and the promise of dates in the future, how could it not be?


End file.
